Wall-Mounted Viewing Station

mmmann

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I have some questions about creating a wall-mounted viewing station. Please forgive any dumb q's on my part: I bought the cameras a month ago, the server a week ago, and BlueIris, a day ago.

I want to mount a touchscreen on the wall at the front door. That way, we can see who's on the other side of the door, or use the touchscreen to poke around the other cameras. And it would be great to have two-way audio. What's the best way to do this? So far, I've considered either a stand-alone computer or a second screen attached to the server.

If it's a computer, then it should be an all-in-one touchscreen that would mount relatively flat. Or maybe a tiny Rasberry Pi Velcro'd to the back of a touchscreen (as per a recent post)? Any suggestions? In that case, I'd run a web browser and connect to UI3? My concern is that it represents an access point to the server. The upside might be that, if BI can't do two-way audio, then you could also run an app from Axis (the A8004-VE doorbell camera), or anything else. I can run any sort of wires up to the 5' mark on the wall.

If it's just a second screen running UI3, connected to the server's 2nd DisplayPort connector, then how would I transport graphics and sound over 35-40', and microphone, back? A KVM extender and a long 1/8" phono line? (The server has DVI and DP). Do touchscreens require USB?

Has anyone done this, before? Thank you for any advice. Let me know if you'd like a run-down on the cameras or on the server that I built.
 

mmmann

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After a lot of research, I think that a Microsoft Surface Go (a 10" Windows tablet) would work well as a wall-mounted viewing station. It has a nice, hi-def touchscreen, perfect for UI3. It could be powered by the GAT-USBC-PD from PoETexas.com (GAT-USBC-PD). This adapter takes PoE+ and delivers both power and data over USB-C (the only USB connector available on the Go). Then I need only run one CAT6 cable to the wall location, a nice, clean solution. The Go also has a 3.5" audio jack in case 2-way audio cannot be delivered between the Axis video doorbell, Blue Iris, and the viewing station running UI3 (audio is a big research to-do on my part).

Does anyone have any experience with a setup similar to this? Would anyone be interested in vetting this idea?
 

whoami ™

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Does anyone have any experience with a setup similar to this? Would anyone be interested in vetting this idea?
My original idea was to do a wall mount...

But I came to the conclusion I've probably made too many modifications to my walls already... (Honeywell smart thermostat, Honeywell LCD alarm keypad, 6x network cable runs, mounted 6U server rack) and I didnt want to make a commitment like that when this touch screen might look outdated in a few years...
But for what-ever its worth, I am able to display my IP cams on my wall mounted LCD alarm keypad in 640p low res...

I ended up having the same idea as you. Why not use a real computer, so I originally went with a Microsoft Surface RT I already had laying around that needed a charger. Ordered the OEM charger off eBay just to find out that the RT was unable to run the plugins the UI3 needed.

Plan B...

After a lot of research and comparisons, I hunted down a refurbished Surface Pro Gen1 with Intel i5 and 4GB RAM for $100 and a docking station for another $30 on eBay, both in Grade A condition. It came with Windows 10 but I wiped it and did a fresh install myself. Set it up to login on start up without password, not sleep, launch Blue Iris UI3 on boot ect...

I cant even find the words to describe how much I love it. Best decision ever. Since its a straight up computer it will do anything I throw at it. Possibilities are endless. It goes in to tablet mode without the keyboard or back in to PC mode when the keyboard is reattached. I can take it anywhere in the house with me to keep a eye on the cams, it stands up by itself without the docking station. The touch screen capabilities are amazing.... This is one part of my set up I would NOT want to change.


20191118_185517.jpg
 
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Smitty Blackstone

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I have a Raspberry Pi 4 running Raspian and the Chromium browser running UI3.
The video output is connected to a spare input on my master bedroom television.
I keep UI3 running all the time, so all I have to do is switch inputs to view cameras.
There is a small wireless keyboard/mouse, so It can be operated from across the bedroom.
 

TL1096r

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I have a Raspberry Pi 4 running Raspian and the Chromium browser running UI3.
The video output is connected to a spare input on my master bedroom television.
I keep UI3 running all the time, so all I have to do is switch inputs to view cameras.
There is a small wireless keyboard/mouse, so It can be operated from across the bedroom.
I went with this tablet instead. It has a 10" screen no issues with setup or extra wiring. It is quick and battery life is nice too - it was easier & cheaper than setting up pi and all the wires (plug/monitor etc):

you know being a cheap china knock-off type deal you do worry about how secure it might be but so far no issues.
 
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